WASHINGTON, Jun 03: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that “the war is over” during a Senate hearing, but within hours new hostilities were reported across the Persian Gulf region.
According to U.S. military statements and international reports, Iranian missiles and drones targeted locations in Kuwait and Bahrain, with several projectiles intercepted or failing before reaching their targets. Regional authorities responded with air defence measures as tensions escalated once again.
The developments come amid stalled diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran, raising fresh questions about the prospects for a lasting ceasefire and regional stability. U.S. Central Command also reported defensive actions and retaliatory strikes following the attacks.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Iran’s armed forces are conducting legitimate self-defence strikes on sites in the Persian Gulf region used by the United States to attack civilian shipping and violate the ceasefire.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Araghchi cited remarks by Secretary Rubio during an open congressional hearing acknowledging that the UAE and Kuwait worked extensively with Washington in the war on Iran.
“Our armed forces are conducting self-defence strikes on sites the US is permitted to use to attack civilian shipping and violate the ceasefire,” Araghchi said in his post.
“Any hostile act will be met with an immediate, decisive response. What sanctions and war failed to achieve won’t be won with more war.”
The IRGC targeted the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain and a US air base in Kuwait following a US strike on an Iranian vessel and Qeshm Island.
Tehran has repeatedly stated that it has the right under Article 51 of the UN Charter to defend itself against aggression.
Iran has targeted American military assets in the region, including facilities in the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, which are used to launch attacks on Iran and to violate the fragile Pakistan-brokered ceasefire in place since early April.
The US-Israeli war of aggression on Iran began on February 28, 2026, with airstrikes that assassinated Iran’s Supreme leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and targeted nuclear facilities, schools and hospitals.
Iran responded with 100 waves of retaliatory strikes under Operation True Promise 4, it was pointed out.
